Raising Teddy
by TSWriter
Summary: Just a collection of one-shots describing Teddy's childhood through Harry's eyes.
1. Godfather and Godson

**Story 1: Meeting Teddy**

The neighborhood was unusually quiet for this time of day. Normally, the streets would be crowded with muggles trying to get to and from work, but today, the streets were empty. It was unnerving, Harry thought. He made his way down the street and to the last house at the end. He raised his hand to knock, but at the last moment, stopped.

"I'm not ready for this," he muttered.

"Oh, stop," ordered his companion, a beautiful young woman with fiery red hair. "If you don't knock I will."

Harry sighed and gathered up all of his courage. Who would have thought that this would be harder than facing Voldemort? He knocked on the door three times and stopped, secretly hoping that nobody would answer and feeling disgusted with himself.

However, just as expected, an older woman came to the door and held it open. Harry and Ginny walked in silently. Andromeda quickly closed the door behind them.

"Teddy's just woken up," she said. "He's back here."

Harry forced his doubts back and followed Andromeda to the last bedroom at the end of the hall. Andromeda opened the door and Harry stepped inside.

The room was tiny and blue. It was relatively empty except for a small cradle. Harry grasped Ginny's hand and peered down. A tiny baby stared back at him with blue eyes so familiar he felt jarring in his heart.

"He's so cute," Ginny whispered. "He's got his mother's hair." Sure enough, as soon as the baby saw Harry, his hair shifted from blue to black.

"Yes," Andromeda said, sounding quite proud.

"He's got his father's eyes," Harry said. "Remus would have liked that."

"Yes," Andromeda said again, although sounding less pleased.

A horrible thought suddenly struck Harry. "He – he hasn't inherited anything _else _from his father, has he?"

"I don't know," Andromeda said. For the first time, her voice shook. "We can't know until his first full moon."

"I'll be here," Harry promised. "Er- when exactly is that?"

"Monday," Andromeda said. "And Teddy will be glad to have you. Will you be here, too Miss?"

"Yes," Ginny said. "If you'll have me?"

Andromeda just nodded. Harry could suddenly see how stressed she was and instantly felt guilty for the doubts he had before. Teddy needed him. He didn't have room for doubts. Swallowing a lump in his throat, Harry spoke again.

"I want to be part of Teddy's life," he said.

Andromeda nodded again, as if she had been expecting this. "I'll show you how to feed him," she said.

"First hold him. Make sure to support his head." She handed Teddy to Harry. Harry had never felt more nervous in his life, but he made sure not to show it as he took the little bundle in his arms. Teddy's hair changed from black to blue again.

"Looks like he likes you," Andromeda said observed. "I'll go get his bottle."

Andromeda went into the kitchen, leaving Harry and Ginny alone with Teddy. Teddy looked straight at Harry and his eyes turned emerald green.

"Tonks would have been proud," Ginny said softly.

"I wonder when he'll be able to do the pig nose," Harry joked.

Andromeda came back into the room holding a small baby bottle. "Harry, go sit in the rocker," she said. "You can feed him."

Harry gulped and carried Teddy over to the rocking chair. He sat down and, making sure Teddy's head was still supported, took the bottle from Andromeda.

"Now just put the bottle in his mouth," Andromeda encouraged. "But make sure you keep his head supported."

Harry nodded and lowered the bottle to Teddy's face. Teddy opened his mouth and took it. Harry sighed in relief.

As Teddy ate, Harry felt his fears melt away. How could he have been afraid of something so simple, so natural, so right? Harry expected the fear to return as Andromeda walked him through the burping process, but none came. He had, it seemed, mastered the first part of parenting, so well that Andromeda felt confident enough to leave Teddy with Harry while she went to take a nap. However, worry still lingered in the back of his mind. It was Ginny who finally voiced his concern.

"Do you think he'll be a werewolf?" Ginny asked.

"I don't know," Harry said, his voice tinged with worry. "I hope not. Remus wouldn't have wanted-" He couldn't finish. Talking about Remus was still painful.

Ginny nodded. Unsure of what else to say, they sat and watched Teddy, who had fallen asleep in Harry's arms.

_Nothing is ever going to be the same, _Harry realized as Teddy wrapped his tiny hand around Harry's finger. _But that's okay. _


	2. Full Moon

With a feeling of dread, Harry Potter looked away from the window and into the room before him and tried to ease the panic that was currently taking over. He needed to be calm, but Harry was finding it hard at the moment.

His godson's entire future depended on what happened tonight, in just a few moments, and Harry could do nothing to help. It had nothing to do with courage or skill this time. It was all just luck now. Harry had no control.

The child in question, Teddy, was currently screaming in his grandmother's arms. Andromeda tried to calm him down, but her efforts were in vain. This, Harry knew, was not a good sign; Teddy was always such a calm child.

"It's time," Andromeda said gruffly, looking out the window. "Harry, Ginny, wands at the ready." She laid the boy down on a blanket. With a haughty expression on her face, she pointed her wand and muttered a few words under her breath. A large, cage-like structure assembled over the wailing baby. Harry desperately wanted to look away. He hated doing this to Teddy. His godson did not belong in a cage.

Harry, Ginny, and Andromeda stood back and watched Teddy. The moon rose higher, illuminating the entire room. Teddy's hair turned a sandy brown and he screamed in agony. But the change went no further. No fur or fangs appeared, and, with a great sense of relief, Andromeda lifted the cage and Harry picked up his godson.

The baby stopped crying at once and nestled himself into Harry's arms like a young puppy to its mother. Still holding Teddy, Harry sat down on the couch, trying to take in what had just happened. Teddy wasn't a werewolf, but it was clear that the full moon had hurt him somehow.

"Remus was afraid this might happen," Harry said gravely.

"But he's not a werewolf!" Ginny protested. "That's good, right?"

"He's not a _full _werewolf," Andromeda corrected. "But there's still some infection, it seems."

"But at least he's not a werewolf!" Ginny insisted.

"If he was a werewolf, we would know what we were dealing with," Andromeda said. "But this – this is something completely different. Possibly unique."

"He's never cried like that before," Harry added viciously. "It's like the moon hurt him somehow." He glared out the window at the night sky, as if it could understand him.

"Well, at least he's fine now," Ginny said. "He could have been a lot worse."

Harry just nodded, but he felt that Ginny was missing the point. It was true that Teddy could have been a lot worse, but he also could have been a lot better. Teddy was so young and innocent; he shouldn't have to deal with these problems at all.

"Perhaps, when he is older, the wolfsbane potion will ease the transformation," Andromeda suggested, but Ginny shook her head.

"The wolfsbane potion is only for werewolves," she said. "Partial werewolves like Teddy can't take it."

Harry looked at Ginny in surprise.

"Bill wanted to take the potion, when he was first savaged by Greyback," Ginny said. "But Remus told him no. He said it would have 'dangerous consequences.'"

"And you think it would be dangerous for Teddy?" Harry asked.

"I'm sure of it," Ginny said. "Remus said it was dangerous for any non-werewolf."

"Well, there goes that idea," Harry said. "We'll just have to take care of him ourselves."

"And we will," Andromeda said firmly. "My daughter would have expected no different."

Harry noted the determined look on Ginny and Andromeda's faces and, despite the situation, had to smile. Teddy's life would not be easy, there was no doubt about it, but he would always be loved. He would have everything Harry never had, and for that, Harry was grateful.


	3. Teddy's First Christmas

A/N: Sorry for the late update, everyone. I promise the next one won't be so long.

* * *

The tiny, precious bundle felt warm against Harry's chest, in contrast to the cold December night. Harry could hear the _Crunch! Crunch! Crunch! _of the snow under his feet as they moved. Harry took a deep breath. He felt Ginny's warm hand squeeze his own as he stepped through the broken gate.

Five marble slabs stood, lined almost perfectly in a row, with snow covering the tops. Harry handed Teddy to Ginny and crouched down, making himself eye level with the names that stared hauntingly back at him.

"Mum, Dad," he began slowly. "Merry Christmas. I'm sorry I haven't visited before... But we've finally done it. We're finally safe. Everything you died for, it's finally paid off. We're free." Harry hesitated. "I have a girlfriend now," he said finally. "Her name's Ginny. I brought her with me. She's helping me take care of Teddy – Remus's son – and with everything. I- I love her. And I know you would, too." Harry's eyes felt wet and Ginny put her arm on his shoulder. Harry gulped and continued speaking.

"I haven't forgotten you, Sirius," Harry said, turning to the empty grave next to James Potter's. "I wish we could have had more time together. I really miss you." Harry sighed. "You were a great godfather. I hope I can be as good as you." Harry paused before speaking again.

"Remus, Tonks, don't think I've forgotten about you," he said. "I brought someone I know you'd want to see." He took Teddy from Ginny. "He misses you," Harry said. "We all do. But as hard as it is, we're doing alright. He's not a werewolf, Remus. He's healthy and strong and Andromeda dotes on him. He won't grow up an orphan, Remus. I promise." Harry felt a lump in his throat. "I'll come back to visit again," he promised. "We'll never forget any of you."

* * *

The mood in the burrow was rather strained that night. It was Christmas Eve, but nobody felt like celebrating. Instead, the entire family sat silently in the sitting room, trying not to look at one another. It was George who finally broke the silence.

"He would have hated this." When nobody spoke, George went on. "F-Fred wouldn't have wanted this. He-he would have wanted us to go on."

There was another awkward silence before Mrs. Weasley spoke. She seemed to be holding back tears. "You're right," she said. "Fred would have wanted us to be happy. It's all he ever wanted." She stood up. "I'll get the presents."

The family sat in silence once more, waiting for Mrs. Weasley to return. Harry exchanged a look with Andromeda, who was holding baby Teddy on her lap. Her face was hard, and her expression unreadable.

Mrs. Weasley came back out into the sitting room, her arms full of sweaters. Harry gave a small smile; no matter what changed, he thought, some things would always stay the same.

"First, for our newest member of the family," Molly said, with small smile at Teddy, who clapped and giggled.

Mrs. Weasley handed the tiny, baby sized sweater to Andromeda, who pulled it over Teddy's head. Harry's eyes widened. This, he thought, was the most brilliant sweater Mrs. Weasley had ever done. It was turquoise blue, matching Teddy's hair, and right in the middle was a print of a bubble-gum pink wolf.

"He loves it!" Harry said, noting the baby's giggles.

"This is perfect, Molly, thank you," Andromeda said.

Molly beamed at her. "Oh, no problem, dearie," she said. "Here, this one is for you." She handed Andromeda an emerald green sweater.

"You didn't have to!" Andromeda flustered.

"It's no trouble," Molly said. "You and Teddy are family now."

Not for the first time, Harry felt overcome with gratitude toward Mrs. Weasley. Not only had she taken him in as one of her own, but now she was doing the same for his godson. He could truly never repay her.

"Thank you, Mrs. Weasley," Harry said. "For everything."

Mrs. Weasley smiled at him. Their eyes met, and Harry could see she was trying to hold back tears. "It's no trouble, dear," she said fondly. "And call me Molly."


End file.
